CURIOSITY OF THE NATIVES. 33 



sometimes seven or eight fathoms. The country 

 through which we had passed presented an ani- 

 mated appearance : the foliage of the trees was 

 of the richest description ; the hills, assuming a 

 westerly direction, were both of a conical and ta- 

 bular form, with patches of red, and marks of 

 cultivation extending to their summits ; while the 

 graceful meanderings of the river, its noble 

 reaches preserving an expanse of water from 

 two thousand five hundred to three thousand 

 yards wide, rendered the scene beautiful beyond 

 any description that I could give of it. 



At 9. 40, we got under weigh for Egga, the 

 reach of the river lying north and south. We 

 were much amused this morning on being gazed 

 at by thousands of the natives, some of whom, in 

 order to see us and examine the vessel, had 

 brought a trifling dash, —such as a few eggs, a 

 fowl, or some yams. During our journey up, we 

 had been the wonder of multitudes, men, women, 

 and children, who never before had seen a white 

 man : relying upon our passive disposition, they 

 flocked on board in such numbers as to become 

 an actual nuisance. Our interpreter, Al Hadge, 

 hit upon a most ingenious method of diminishing 

 their numbers— by not allowing any one to come 



VOL. II. D 



